An 8th grade student at Clark Intermediate School in Clovis says she was told to cover up a shirt that featured the words, "Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning."

Andria Zavala got the pride shirt from her mom as an Easter present.

But when she wore it to school last week, Andria said a counselor told her to check to see if it was in dress code. When Andria approached principal Teresa Barber and another administrator, she was told the shirt was "a distraction to other people and their beliefs."

She said the administrators then told her to button up her flannel top to cover up the T-shirt for the rest of the day.

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Tacos! Now that we have your attention, prepare yourself for amazing food and great entertainment. Our annual Cinco De Mayo show is right around the corner. Hosted by the talented Patricia de Leon - featuring your favorite local talent. All proceeds benefit the 2018 Fresno Rainbow Pride Parade and Festival (food provided by Tacos Marquitos!)

Doors open/dinner served 6:30pm-7:30pm $15 cover;
Show 8:00pm $10 cover.
An all ages event.

A prominent Tower District real estate agent is facing a misdemeanor sexual battery charge from an incident at a gay nightclub in early February.

Fresno County District Attorney's Office filed charges against Tom DeBey, 49, earlier this month after a Fresno Police Department investigation. DeBey has not entered a plea and is scheduled to be arraigned in June.

The alleged incident occurred Feb. 9 at FAB, a gay nightclub on Olive Avenue, the main thoroughfare in Fresno's Tower District. Jessica D. Thomas, a 31-year-old artist and performer who lives and works in the Tower District, told police DeBey grabbed her hair and yanked her back as he rubbed his groin on her.

"I just wanted to go hang out with my friends after work one day, and then I got assaulted by a gay guy — which is the craziest thing to say as a woman," she said. "These gay guys think they have some type of entitled view of a woman’s body because they’re gay. It's appalling behavior. It's a bigger shame for me because we’re trying to fight that view that the gay community is just a bunch of drunken perverts. We’re trying to police this."

One of FAB's owners, Terry Story, said DeBey was escorted out of the club by security and is not allowed to return.

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With an early Easter out of the way, I am ready to welcome Spring. It is the time of year when I find it increasingly hard to write as I stare out my window enjoying everything that is in full bloom. The bees and hummingbirds are fighting over the jasmine in the yard. The lilies and irises are popping up in the flowerbeds. It is the time of year that I fall deeply in love with my backyard all over again.

Is it really possible to fall in love with something all over again? Some people would say that you never really stopped loving it in the first place, but that you have just forgotten what it felt like.

Being married to the man of my dreams for over thirty years, I have found that what love feels like now has changed over the course of our several decades together. The butterflies fluttering in the belly stopped long ago. I no longer get tongue tied at the very sight of him when he walks into the room. These physical responses have been replaced with something else; an indelible sense of comfort that he knows I’m not perfect and yet he still loves me. He is the one person that slows me down, allows me to catch my breath, renews me. He is my soulmate.

These reassuring feelings of comfort happen over and over again. Just like in my yard, with the changing cycle of the seasons, the beauty is continually renewed and revealed in a multitude of ways and often takes me by surprise.

Read more: Falling in Love All Over Again

Fresno Unified paid more than $2.7 million because of trustee Brooke Ashjian’s conflicts of interest with local construction companies during his first and only term on the school board, according to district documents.

A bulk of that cost came after the school district was forced to rebid a building project for Figarden Elementary in 2016 and again in 2017 because the originally selected construction firms had a "prohibited interest" with Ashjian and his company, according to information received from a public records request filed by The Bee.

The price could ramp up even more: Fresno Unified has had significant legal expenses, but attorneys would not release those numbers, citing laws that protect attorney-client privilege in pending litigation.

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Fresno Unified School District trustee Brooke Ashjian will not seek re-election to the board in November, he announced Wednesday.

Ashjian said he's not running for any other office this year either and will instead focus on his family, which includes his wife, four children and one grandchild.

"If I ran again, I would win," Ashjian said.

He plans to remain in his district through the end of his term.

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LGBT Fresno is looking for LGBTQ (and allies) journalist interns to cover events and write feature articles. LGBT Fresno is a non profit community resource and news site serving the LGBTQ community in Fresno and the Central Valley since 1999. If you have an interest in covering important and relevant stories about the issues that affect the LGBTQ community in Fresno, the Central Valley or around the globe we want to meet you!

This is an unpaid internship but could evolve into an independent contract paying position in the future.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and provide any relevant past writing (if possible)

Trans Lifeline operators are available 18 hours a day every day of the week. 8am to 2am at 1 (877) 565-8860

Trans Lifeline is a 501(c)3 non-profit dedicated to the well being of transgender people. We run a hotline staffed by transgender people for transgender people. Trans Lifeline volunteers are ready to respond to whatever support needs members of our community might have.

This line is primarily for transgender people experiencing a crisis. This includes people who may be struggling with their gender identity and are not sure that they are transgender. While our goal is to prevent self harm, we welcome the call of any transgender person in need. We will do our very best to connect them with services that can help them meet that need. If you are not sure whether you should call or not, then please call us.

Our hotline is staffed by the true experts on transgender experience, transgender people themselves. Our volunteers are all trans identified and educated in the range of difficulties transgender people experience. Our volunteers are dedicated to improving the lives of transgender people.

Additionally, our operators will only call emergency services with your expressed consent.

April 8th: Bowling for Pride from 12PM to 3PM at Bowlero

April 21st: Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) from 12PM to 4PM at Alliant International University

April 21st: Expression Not Suppression Conference (ENS) at Fresno High School

April 28th: Drag Queen Story Hour from 11AM to 1PM at Bitwise Industries

April 29th: Anniversary Block Party from from 10AM to 1PM at Common Space

See our calendar for more events!

You are not alone!

Are you 14-18 years old?

Do you need support?

Do you need a safe place to be and to express who you are?

Scott Polenz, MA LMFT, facilitator

This Free support group is for LGBTQIA teens and meets the 1st and 3rd Sunday of every month.

Pizza, snacks and drinks provided by Our Saviour's Lutheran Church

This is a non religious event/group, all are welcome.

ENS is a free, annual conference in the Fresno area of California for LGBTQ and straight ally youth who are dedicated to creating safer schools and building the GSA movement in the Central Valley.

ENS is open to middle and high school students, teachers, and GSA advisors, as well as the larger community. ENS includes free workshops on topics related to LGBTQ youth activism and safe schools. ENS also includes a free dinner, a dance and a drag show.

Read more: Expression Not Suppression Conference